But She Still Stays
by kbrewster
Summary: What if Emily Prentiss gave up everything to accept Ian Doyle's proposal?


**I haven't written any oneshots in awhile, so I figured that's what I'd do on my Friday night! If don't already know, I totally hardcore shipped Lauren (or Emily, whatever) and Doyle. I asked for prompts on my tumblr earlier, and someone asked for Ian/Lauren/wedding, so this is what I came up with! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own CM**

**-kbrewster.**

Emily found herself awake before anyone else in the villa- quite a rare occurrence since she certainly loved her sleep. Today, however, was a different story. Today would be her wedding day. Today, in just a few hours, she would marry Ian Doyle. It was going against everything she had been taught- she had been sent here to take him down as Emily Prentiss, undercover as Lauren Reynolds. The longer she spent by Ian's side, the more she realized she wasn't playing a part. She wasn't _pretending _to fall in love with him, she was actually in love with him.

She tip-toed down to the kitchen, making herself a cup of tea. As she waited for the liquid to warm, she found herself absentmindedly grasping the rings she wore around her neck. She thought back to the day Ian had given them to her- basically proposing to her right then and there. Emily remembered feeling her breath catch in her throat, she didn't know what she was supposed to do. She knew somewhere in the back of her mind, that this simple proposal meant that she was close enough to the man to bring him in, to finish the job she was sent here to do. But, as she went in to hug him, feeling safe and secure in his strong arms, she realized she didn't _want _to have him arrested. She didn't _want _him to go to jail. She didn't want to go back to being Emily Prentiss. What did Emily Prentiss have back home, anyway? A stable job, but was that really worth giving up what she had here, with Ian?

Emily rolled her eyes to herself, scoffing at the thought. Emily Prentiss had a family, but she wasn't close to them. Her parents saw her as more of a necessity- all their political friends had children, why shouldn't they? Emily Prentiss had few friends, and she wasn't close to any of them. Lauren Reynolds, however, had everything Emily Prentiss could ever dream of. Lauren Reynolds had a man, who, no matter how downright evil he could be- still loved her. Lauren Reynolds had a little boy named Declan, while he wasn't biologically hers, Lauren felt like he was. Declan loved her, too, and that was enough for Lauren.

She knew it was irrational, she knew morally it was wrong. But, since the day Ian had given her the necklace she still wore around her neck, she had made her mind up. She would never go back to being Emily Prentiss. She would be Lauren Reynolds for the rest of her life. She would raise Declan- though she still refused to raise him up to be like Ian. As sweet and caring as Ian could be, the rational side of Emily knew he was criminal, a killer. Declan was four years old, and Lauren intended on letting the sweet boy keep his innocence as long as he possibly could.

The brunette finished her tea, pouring it into a ceramic mug she and Declan had painted a few weeks ago together. She sat down at the bar in the kitchen. She held the mug up to her nose, breathing in the steam, enjoying what little quiet time she would get for the day, knowing any time now someone would come in and start fussing over her hair, her makeup, and her dress. That was one part of Emily Prentiss that Lauren couldn't seem to shake- people fussing over her. She didn't care what she looked like, she just wanted to be married already.

She felt something wrap around her shoulder, and she nearly jumped out of her skin. Luckily, none of the hot tea had spilled out of the mug.

"You scared me," she hissed, looking up at Ian who had apparently come down from the bedroom.

"Sorry, love," he replied, a smile creeping across his face. He leaned in to kiss her.

"You're not supposed to see me before the wedding," she told him once they broke apart. He raised an eyebrow to her in question.

"Really, Lauren?" he asked. "Don't you remember last night? Or do I need to remind you?" he said quietly into her ear, eliciting a child-like giggle from the woman.

"How could I forget?" She said back. "Isn't that some kind of rule, though? You're not supposed to see me before the wedding?" She asked, eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

"We already broke the rule," Ian said simply, taking a sip of her tea. "Might as well continue the streak,"

Emily smiled at him, but didn't have time to respond as they heard the sound of little footsteps bounding down the stairs.

"Lauren!" The curly-haired, blue-eyed boy said happily, launching himself into her lap.

"Good morning, Declan," she greeted warmly, placing a kiss on the top of his head.

"I see who your favorite is, Dec," Ian said, feigning jealousy. "I guess we'll just have to leave you home this weekend while Lauren and I leave for the beach," he said, referring to the trip the three of them planned to take together after the wedding. They hadn't wanted to leave Declan with anyone else their first weekend as a family, so instead of taking a honeymoon, just the two of them, they opted for a family vacation for all three of them.

"No!" Declan screamed, giggling as he did so. He jumped down from Emily's lap and hugged his father's legs. "Morning Daddy!" he said happily, looking up at the man.

"That's better," Ian joked, picking the small boy up, tickling his sides as he did so.

Ian took a seat next to Emily, Declan sitting in his lap. The three of them sat that way for a few moments, just enjoying each other's company. Until Declan broke the silence.

"Daddy?" The little boy asked.

"Yeah?" Ian acknowledged.

"You and Lauren are getting married today, right?"

"That's right, you're the ring-bearer, remember?"

"I remember," Declan said. After a beat or two, he added. "Does that make Lauren my Mommy?" he asked innocently. Emily glanced at Ian, who had a smile plastered on his face.

"Kind of, yeah," Ian confirmed. "She'll be your step-mommy, but it'll be just like she's your real Mommy," Ian explained.

"Okay!" Declan exclaimed happily, reaching across his father's lap to get to Emily's. She took him happily, settling him into her lap.

"So you're gonna stay with us forever?" Declan asked, turning his face up at Emily.

"Yes," Emily said. "I'm not going anywhere, kiddo,"

"Good!" Declan said happily, throwing his little arms around Emily's neck. She knew in that moment, she'd made the right decision. She didn't care what the CIA, Interpol, or even her mother had to say about any of this. She was happy, and she wasn't going to throw it away.

"Alright," Ian said. "What do you say we get you ready for the wedding?" Ian asked the boy. "Lauren's got people coming in any minute to take care of getting her ready,"

"Do I gotta wear that suit you showed me?" Declan asked.

"I'm afraid so, Declan," Ian said, standing from his seat and picking Declan up from Emily's lap.

"Okay," Declan agreed, clearly not happy about it. Emily laughed as she watched Ian whisk Declan away up the stairs.

Ten minutes later, she heard knocking on her door. She knew who it was already, as she went to the door and opened it, greeting the man and woman on the other side with a smile. She noticed the group of people standing behind them, and assumed they were there to decorate. Emily lead them through the house to the backyard, where the wedding would be held. She left them to it, and allowed the man and woman to lead her upstairs to prepare her for the ceremony later.

Emily was growing anxious. It felt like she'd been sitting in that damn chair for hours. She couldn't believe how long it was taking them to get her hair and makeup done, she was sure she'd be late to her own wedding. She tapped her foot, but felt a hand on her knee, forcing her to stop.

"We're almost done," The woman said, who had since identified herself as Olivia. The man, Peter, was still working on her eye makeup.

"And, viola!" Peter said, spinning Emily around in the chair to face the mirror. Her hair was still in its usual curl, but it was put in some kind of crazy up-do Emily knew she would never be able to master in her own. Pieces had been left around her face, framing it beautifully. She noticed her makeup, though it had taken forever, had hardly been noticeable. She knew it was there, but to some people, it might not even have been visible. She saw a smile spreading across her face at the mirror.

"You like it?" Olivia asked.

"It's perfect," Emily breathed, happy that she hadn't opted to do her own hair and makeup like she'd wanted, but Ian had suggested it to make the day even more special for the two of them. "Thank you," she added swiftly.

"Let's go get your dress on!" Peter exclaimed, taking his hand in hers. "If you think it looks great now, just wait til you see the whole ensemble, you're going to look fantastic!"

Emily laughed at his enthusiasm, but followed him into the bedroom nonetheless, Olivia trailing quickly behind.

Peter had been right, once her dress and shoes were on, her jewelry in place, Emily looked at herself in the mirror, this time full-length. Her dress reached the floor, barely leaving room for her white heels to be shown. It fluttered out at the waist, not too much, but just enough. The neckline was low enough that her rings she wore around her neck were visible, standing out against her pale skin. Emily had sworn to herself for years that she would never wear a white wedding dress. She never thought she would be able to pull it off with her pale complexion, but now, she couldn't see herself in anything else. She couldn't believe it, she was actually getting married. To someone she loved, to someone she trusted. No matter how twisted that might sound to someone else. Emily didn't care. She felt tears welling up in her eyes, but she held them back, not wanting to ruin her makeup.

"Well?" Peter asked. "Don't you love it?"

"Yes!" Emily agreed quickly. "It's great, really. Thank you both so much," she flashed them a smile.

"I believe you have an aisle to walk down," Olivia reminded her, linking her arm in Emily's. Together, they walked down the stairs and to the door leading out to the back yard. Getting Emily ready had taken so long, that everything was already in order and ready to go; they were simply waiting on Emily. A longtime friend of Ian's was walking Emily down the aisle, as Lauren's parents obviously couldn't. Not that Emily's would have either, she thought bitterly to herself. She swallowed whatever unhappy feelings had managed to creep up, and linked her arm to Liam's, thankful he had offered to walk her down. Liam had been skeptical of her at first, but apparently those feelings had long past now. Olivia handed Emily the flowers, and off they went. The door to the back yard opened, and Emily felt her heart stop.

The yard was decorated beautifully, adorned in purple decorations to match the purple flowers she had planted there. Bows had been tied around tree trunks, smaller ones tied in trees. A purple carpet laid before her, signifying the path she was to walk down. Purple flowers were placed on the sides of the guest's seats. Emily looked up, and met eyes with Ian. She'd never seen that look on his face before, she couldn't quite place what he was thinking. She smiled at him, and he returned it. Her attention then went down to Declan, standing proudly next to his father, rings on the pillow that he held tightly in his hand. She wanted to laugh at the purple flower that was sticking out of the jacket pocket on Declan's chest. He had clearly picked it out from the garden.

She hardly remembered anything else about the proceeding events. She didn't remember Liam giving her to Ian. She didn't remember grasping both his hands in hers. She couldn't recount to you what all the minister said as he went on about love, the sacredness of marriage, among other things. The only thing she was certain of the whole time, was her love for the man standing in front of her. As the minister was finishing his speech, Ian leaned down a bit to whisper in her ear.

"You're so beautiful, Lauren," he said. She didn't know what to say back, she only smiled and gripped his hands a little tighter.

They exchanged their vows, something else Emily couldn't fully remember even happening. Ian slipped a ring on her finger, and she slipped one on his. Once they kissed, with a passion neither of them had ever felt before, Emily knew it was official. There was no going back. There would be no more Emily Prentiss. There would be no more Lauren Reynolds, either. From now on, it would be Lauren Doyle. She would live with Ian, her husband. Together, they would raise Declan. They would be a family, and as she and Ian walked back into the house, hand-in-hand, an excited Declan trailing their path as the guests threw rice over them- a tradition as most weddings- Emily couldn't think of anything else she would rather be doing.


End file.
